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It’s hard to retain one’s normalcy when they become tied to someone in the public eye. Especially when that someone is a god among men, a personality brighter and more ethereal than any to ever exist.
That was your boyfriend. Your lover, the god of trickery, the mischievous one of the Olympian bunch from ancient Greek mythology: Hermes. To this day, you still can hardly believe that he’s yours and you’re his. Despite having been around his divine presence for about a year now, you still couldn’t quite get settled. Maybe that was normal, considering he was a god, for heaven’s sake, and you were not.
You, a human. A mortal, weak, seemingly normal human.
You still wondered what he saw in you. Wondered why he stayed, day after day, month after month. You simply could not understand it. What reason did he have to stay with you? As far as you knew, there were about a billion other people on this earth that he could spend his time with, and yet, he continued to choose you.
Even now, as you wandered the cereal aisle in your local grocery store, idly scanning for the ridiculously sugary brand that your divine lover so craved, you pondered your current situation.
If it wasn’t enough for you to be the lover of an Olympian, Hermes was also a world-renowned fashion and design icon. His creativity had that certain ethereal touch that couldn’t be replicated by any human mind, and because of that skill, his popularity shot up the ranks the moment he stepped into the fashion sphere.
Of course, being one of, if not the, biggest name in the industry came with its pros as well as its cons. Certainly its cons.
Being who you were, which was a normal human who preferred to stay out of the public eye and all that came with it, and Hermes being who he is, a literal magnet for all the aforementioned things, your relationship was incredibly unconventional. Still, the love you shared made all of those discrepancies seem minuscule compared to the joy you both drew from being together.
However, all the love in the world could not always overcome the negativity you faced, both from Hermes’ devoted fanbase and your own mind.
Hermes, being who he is, naturally drew the hearts and minds of many a soul around the globe. He had one of the most loyal groups of fans ever to exist, and it was sweet to witness at times. The sweetness could never quite outweigh the darkness that plagued the rest of his fans, unfortunately.
That negativity was never aimed at him, oh no.
It was always, without fail, directed at you.
It seemed that you could do nothing right in the public eye. Apparently, even your very breath was a nuisance to Hermes’ fans, and they made sure to announce their loud opinions on social media. Nearly every day, your name was dropped in forums, on hate accounts dedicated specifically to you.
Whenever you actually took the time to read the hateful nonsense being spun about you on the internet, you couldn’t help but laugh to yourself. After all, nothing anyone has said yet has been any worse than what you already think of yourself daily.
Even before you and Hermes came into a relationship, you’d struggled with your self-worth and how you saw yourself. Being with him only furthered the discrepancy between you and him in your mind, and the distance only seemed to grow wider with each passing day.
Hermes was aware of this, of course, and, being the ray of sunshine that he was, he always went above and beyond, encouraging you to love yourself and to see yourself the way he sees you. It never seemed to last for long, though. The sun doesn’t stay out forever, not in your world, especially. Hermes was your sun, and you felt as if you were merely the dark sky without him.
All of these things you pondered as you reached for the sickeningly bright yellow box of sugared cereal, slipping it into your grocery basket and continuing on to peruse the rest of the store for the items you still needed to track down.
Today did not seem to be a peaceful one for you, though.
You’d clocked them immediately upon setting foot into the busy grocery store. A group of about four girls, phones out and in hand, with cameras seemingly aimed directly at you from the get-go.
You’d experienced run-ins with crazy fans before. Being Hermes’ lover, it came with the territory, unfortunate as it was. However, you’d never dealt with them on your own before. You’d always had either your boyfriend or his security at your side to shield you from any unsavory altercations that you happened to find yourself in.
Today, that was not the case. Your beloved partner was away on a day trip for some designer brand, and no ounce of security could be spared to stay behind with you, which left you to brave the horrid grocery store on your own.
Of course, today was the day that you found yourself in a situation like this, without anyone to help you.
As you tried to sneak your way to the self-checkouts, it just so happened that this group of girls followed you there and had finally decided to make themselves known to you.
“So, this is the one that managed to snag our beloved Hermes’ heart, hm?” One of the girls spoke up, clearly coming off hostile from the very tone of her voice. “What a letdown. I mean, I knew you were ugly, but wow. I didn’t know his standards were so low. Practically six feet under.” Shrill, taunting giggles echoed amongst the girls as you stood there, clutching your box of cereal after having forgone picking up whatever else was on your list.
“I don’t want any trouble. Please.” You spoke quietly, clearly lacking the courage to tell them off in public.
“You signed up for trouble the moment you got involved with him.” Another one of the girls spoke up, quickly growing more agitated. “He’s too perfect to be tied down to some lowlife like you. He’s better off without you, and you know it. You should just leave while you can still save face. Let the poor man be free. He’s got his whole life ahead of him. Why drag him down with a drab presence like yours?”
You felt yourself shrink back, paranoid thoughts turning into liquid insecurity right before your eyes. “Look, I— I know that, okay? I know he deserves better—”
“Then leave.” The first girl spoke up again, her voice cold and final. “If you know you’re only a weight trying to drown him in the ocean, why hold on? Let him go. He deserves better. Maybe try dating someone on your level. You know, underground.” She smirked, causing another round of laughter to circle throughout the group of girls.
You couldn’t stand it anymore. You hurried out of the store without missing a beat, your box of cereal left unpaid for on the counter as you rushed yourself outside.
You knew they’d filmed the whole thing. It was only a matter of time before your face would once again be plastered all over social media, the laughingstock of your city for the next few days.
You practically ran all the way home, slamming the button to the elevator that took you up to your shared apartment with Hermes.
Today was one of the most horrible days you’d ever lived, and the worst part? Your lover wasn’t even there to comfort you after what you’d just been through. No. You had to comfort yourself alone.
Rain began to pour outside, seemingly matching your mood as you remained huddled up in your bed for the remainder of the day. Even your very resting place seemed much too empty without the presence of Hermes to fill it alongside you.
You’d long lost track of what time it was when you finally heard the front door open.
Hermes was home.
“Darling?” His familiar melodic voice called out into the otherwise empty apartment while you remained sequestered away in your shared bedroom. “I’m home! You’ve no idea the dreadful conditions outside that my poor furs went through, I’m positively soaked—” He opened the door to the bedroom, stepping inside. You watched as the words of your bubbly boyfriend immediately died on his tongue at the sight of you, nothing more than a lump underneath the covers.
“My love, what’s the matter? Don’t tell me this weather’s got my beloved down in the dumps.” His voice audibly softened, and you could hear the quiet squeak of his leather shoes as he slid them off by the door, feet padding across the laminate to come sit with you on the bed.
You finally poked your head out from beneath the covers, eyes red and puffy, and cheeks tear-stained from your earlier meltdown in the privacy of your own home. “I’m just tired.” You rasped, voice scratchy and raw from crying.
Hermes raised a brow, and you could see the disbelief in his eyes, even from behind those ridiculously expensive sunglasses of his. “Come now, dear, it’s really quite comical to try and lie to a god. Tell me, what troubles you? Who or what has broken my love’s heart to make her cry like this?”
You let out a heavy sigh, dragging yourself up to a sitting position and resting your back against the headboard, hands wringing out the comforter you were previously huddled under. “I…I went to the store today.” You began.
Hermes frowned. “I didn’t realize the grocery store could cause such distress, my dear. We could’ve simply gone together if you’d been able to wait until I returned—”
“No, that’s— that’s not the issue, the store was fine. I just— I ran into some people today.” Your voice lowered, your discomfort bleeding through.
Hermes’ expression darkened almost instantly. “…who exactly did you run into, darling? Surely none that would mess with you on my behalf, yes?” You could hear the lower register in his voice, the usual musical and whimsical tone a distant memory.
“Just some fans of yours. They, um, wanted to chat.” You murmured, fingers curling in the blanket across your lap. The visible tensing of your body didn’t escape Hermes’ watchful gaze.
“Did they now?” You watched as your boyfriend’s jaw clenched, throat bobbing with quiet, restrained anger. “What, pray tell, did they want to chat with you about? I’ve made it quite clear to the public before that I prefer my fans not interfere with my love life.”
You shook your head, gaze lowering to your hands in your lap. Another heavy sigh left your lips. “…they told me that I should leave you. That I’m not good enough for you. That I’m just a weight in an ocean, dragging you down to drown with me. That I ruin your image just by having my name associated with yours.” The words fell from your lips like shards of glass, every sentence painful to even speak.
Hermes sat there in silence, one hand reaching up to remove his sunglasses. The golden, heavenly glow in his eyes was a visible representation of his simmering anger, close to its boiling point. “I would hope you would not heed such baseless speculations, my love. I would also hope that those bags sitting by the door do not mean that you intended to follow through with what they asked of you.”
Your head snapped up, eyes zeroing in on the packed bags sitting by the bedroom door, an unmistakable sign that you really *had* planned on leaving him.
“I—” You started, unsure of how to even phrase what you were thinking, nor what you were feeling. “They’re right, Hermes. They were right about everything. You’re better off without me, I— I wanted to leave before you came back, but I just— I couldn’t, because I’m selfish.” You curled into yourself on the bed, drawing your knees up to your chest and hugging them tight. “I’m selfish to think that I deserve this, that you could ever be truly happy with me. You’re a god, I— I’m just a human. A weak, pathetic, poor excuse of a human.”
The bedroom fell into a saddened silence for a few minutes. Hermes sat there, golden gaze trained on you as he watched your insecurities eat you alive.
After those few minutes, he moved towards you on the bed, gathering you into his arms and guiding your head to rest against his chest, the sound of his strong heartbeat echoing in your ears.
“You know, listening to you say all of those things, I truly didn’t happen to hear any truth out of any of what you said.” He began, voice soft in a way that was only ever reserved for you. “All I heard is falsehood, lies that others have told you in order to tear you down in an attempt to build themselves up.”
You lifted your head to look up at him, brows furrowed in confusion.
He couldn’t help but smile down at you, golden eyes gentle with love as he looked at you. “You aren’t wrong, love. I am a god, I’ve lived a thousand lifetimes, and I will continue to do so. However, that doesn’t make what we have any less. Your love is enough to last me a lifetime, my darling. Our relationship isn’t perfect, but that’s what I adore about being with you. No other human on this earth could bring me half the joy and light that you do, no matter what any of them say to try and sway your mind.”
You tilted your head, listening with intent as he continued on. “It’s okay to be selfish, my darling. It’s okay to want something good for yourself. I want you to be selfish. You are kind-hearted, and I love that about you, but you are much too quick to give up what you love at the first sign of adversity. Please, be selfish. Be selfish, and be protective of me, just as I am of you. You are worthy, and your soul is the one that I love most in this world.”
He looked down at you with a pleading gaze. “Please, promise me that you will no longer heed such negativity from any of the hateful ones out there. You have too beautiful a heart for it to be broken.”
You let out a soft sigh, clearing your throat to speak. “Hermes, I— it’s hard. It’s hard not to wonder if they’re right. Every day, it’s something new. Gosh, those girls—” You clutched at your hair, fingers curling into the strands and anxiously pulling. “They filmed me, Hermes. They filmed me. Do you have any idea how pathetic I’ll look when and if that makes it to social media? It’s probably already been posted, I—”
Your panicked rambling was silenced when his lips descended on yours. Not heated, not sensual, but gentle. A kiss meant to soothe, not to rile up. A kiss meant to say I’m here.
It was only a few seconds, but that was enough time to stop the train of thought you were on.
“My darling, please. We’ll deal with them together. I will take action if I need to, you know that. No one breaks my beloved’s heart and gets away with it. Trust me to handle everything. I will protect you; you never have to doubt that I won’t.” His hand cupped your cheek, the gentlest of touches.
It was the moments like these that made it all worth it. Being with Hermes certainly wasn’t easy, but at the end of the day, there was no love like his, and if you really thought about it, his love could carry you through anything. *You just had to trust him*.
After all, any problem could be solved with a little divine intervention.